On the term Hinduism – Karan Singh

The religion that has come to be known as Hinduism is
certainly the oldest and most varied of all the great religions of the world.
The word ‘Hinduism’ itself is a geographical term based upon the Sanskrit name
of the great river that runs across the northern boundaries of India, known as
the Sindhu. For those living on the other side of the this river, the entire
region to the south-east of the Sindhu, which the Greeks called the Indus, came
to known as the land of the Hindus, and the vast spectrum of faiths that
flourished here acquired the generic name Hinduism.

In fact, Hinduism calls itself the Sanatana Dharma, the
eternal faith, because it is based not upon the teachings of single preceptor
but on the collective wisdom and inspiration of great seers and sages from the
very dawn of Indian civilization.

The Sanskrit word for philosophy is Darshana or seeing,
which implies that Hinduism is not based merely on intellectual speculation but
is grounded upon direct and immediate perception.Karan Singh